


Seek Out

by Darkhymns



Category: Tales of Symphonia
Genre: Alternate Universe, Amnesia, F/M, Memories, Tales of Asteria
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-24
Updated: 2017-12-15
Packaged: 2019-01-04 18:51:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12174624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkhymns/pseuds/Darkhymns
Summary: If there's a disturbance in this world, the White Lions will pursue it, and set things right. So Mikleo and Colette have little choice but to trust a new stranger to help them.Still, Colette wonders if it's all been wrong to begin with.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm in love with the new clothes for Lloyd and Colette in Tales of Asteria, as well as the [trailer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ElzBcGHozQ), and that's where this comes in. Very little to do with the actual plot of Tales of Asteria, because I just don't know it. :) 
> 
>  
> 
> ~~Forgive me for some other non-Symphonia characters being OOC, I did my best.~~

Mikleo stepped back the moment the tiny pug made its way towards Colette. “I’m… fine over here.”

“He won’t hurt you!” she tried to reassure him. But a lot of her attention was focused on the happy canine. It stood up, placing its front paws on her knees as she knelt before it. She gave all of the gentle petting it desired. “You’ll like him! His fur is really soft!”

The seraphim’s eyes shifted, silently asking for help from any passerby in the city. “It- it could bite, you know! You don’t know where it’s been!”

At his voice, the pug turned to him, tail still wagging. Then it started to bark, making Mikleo jump.

“See?!”

“It’s okay, Puggie! He’s just nervous!” She gave it one final pet against its back before nudging the dog away. “We have to go now, but we’ll see you next time!”

Mikleo visibly sighed once the animal was out of sight, probably chasing after a stray cat. “You don’t have to make friends with every dog we come across, Colette.”

Brushing the dust and fur from her legs, she walked back to Mikleo’s side. His stance was still rigid from his close encounter with the animal. “I’m sorry. I’ll try to stay more focused next time.”

“That’s good.” With an easy smile, he looked out again into the city. Ladylake was grand in its stucco design, the stone-cobbled roads extending what seemed like miles before them both. Colette had been wide-eyed when they first entered, commenting how it seemed even larger than Meltokio.

Mikleo had never been here before, but that didn’t stop the wave of déjà vu that engulfed him when they both walked through the front gates. Or dissuade the dream he had of that white-garbed boy. “That woman said she’d meet us here… but she didn’t exactly say _where_ in this place.”

Colette tapped a finger against her chin. “Maybe she’s at an inn. A lot of people meet there.”

“This city most likely has more than one inn…” Still, it was a start, and they now had a sense of direction. “Or we could ask around for her. It shouldn’t be too difficult. I don’t think tall, black-haired women with ripped clothes and a fully bandaged arm are that common a sight.”

Colette’s steps were light, meeting his pace as they maneuvered around merchant’s carts and other passerby. Mikleo sneaked a glance to his friend, and there was a concern there in her expression that he couldn’t ever recall seeing. Though Colette certainly worried over her family and friends back home, there was also something else – not just trepidation, but of quiet expectation.

He had kept his doubts in for too long. “What do you hope to get out of this?”

Neither stopped their pace, but she half-turned her head towards him. “Mikleo?”

“She comes to us in the middle of nowhere, and you follow just like that.” He shook his head. “You’re trusting, Colette, but not…not usually _this_ much.”

Her hands fidgeted, a habit he would usually try to help her control with a soft clasp of his own hands. “She saved us from those bandits.”

“Maybe. Not like we didn’t have it covered.”

“Also… she had kind eyes.”

That only made him uneasy, but Mikleo wouldn’t argue.

Both traveled on in silence, leaving one section of the city for another. Each area looked nearly identical, leaving Mikleo to try perusing their surroundings a little more closely. The tiled-roof buildings looked more well-maintained here, and shopping was delegated indoors instead of out on the streets. Yet even so, there were still thick crowds populating the walkways. Would their inn be in this part of town?

He had been walking along for a while until he realized Colette was not following him. He turned, finding the girl’s attention distracted yet again. If it was another dog…

A young man was with her, and he was holding onto her arm.

Dimly, he heard, “…do I know you?”

There was no reason to hesitate, and when he rushed over to Colette, the other had already stepped away. A flash of red danced around the man’s neck, and the only features that Mikleo could see were his eyes. Brown like oak, with russet hair to match. But the cloth over his mouth made it hard to memorize the entirety of his face.

The stranger was fast, dodging back into the crowd of people. Mikleo strained his eyes, but all he could see were street merchants, laughing children, and city guards who had just completely ignored the near confrontation under their noses. _He was dressed like the ones who…_

Colette didn’t even look at him. He shook her shoulder. “Colette! What happened? Did he hurt you?”

She pressed a hand against the golden bands over her neck, tracing them to find the soft chain she also wore along with it. “I thought… I think I’ve met him before.”

“You’ve never mentioned him to me before.” He tried again to see through the crowd, but that color of red was nowhere to be found. His companion was still lost in thought, hand still over her neck. “Hey. Snap out of it. This is what happens when you don’t pay attention to your surroundings.”

“Yeah…” She had to wrench her hands away, pulling at the white sleeves of her overcoat. Still, it seemed to take an eternity for her to face him. “I’m sorry, Mikleo. I probably didn’t get enough sleep.”

He sighed in response, a smile quirking his lips. “Come on, Colette,” he admonished, but gently. “This is no way for a Shepherd to act.” He took her hand, as they would do when they were children. “Let’s go.”

* * *

“What the hell was that all about?”

Fang scratched at the cloth over his mouth, both aggravated and reluctant when he went back to the others. Claw’s eyes were sharp on him, peering from over the high collar of his jacket.

“I was… I was scouting them out! Like you said!”

“Yeah, scouting as in assessing their location. What they’re doing, what they’re planning, etc. Not _walking up to them.”_

“That’s enough,” Roar spoke from her seat at the table, her quiet voice at odds with her chosen name. The bar was in the lower parts of the city, meant more for the city guards than regular folk with its plain furnishings, baring no sign outside its stone-constructed building. But it was also a bar that belied its looks, serving perhaps some of the best food in the city. Fang would usually scarf down a mouthful, but he was too busy fidgeting under his companions’ stares.

“I won’t make the same mistake again, alright?”

Claw scoffed. He hung his sheathed sword over his shoulder, tapping his foot against the wooden floorboards. “I don’t see how you could. Now they’ll be on the lookout.”

“I can still track them down!”

“That’s all we need now anyway.” Roar downed her drink, holding the clay mug up by her fingertips. The inn had poor lighting, sputtering from the dying candles placed at each table. It darkened the shadows within her hood. “Find out where they meet, and who they meet. Especially the girl.”

Fang nodded. “I overheard them. They’re going to meet that Velvet person.”

“When I last saw her, she was hanging out by the temple,” Claw added. “It shouldn’t take more than a few days for them to contact one another.” He pulled at his collar. “Though it would be easier if we had less conspicuous clothes.”

“Come on! These outfits my dad made for us are great!”

“And you had to add red to yours, as if white wasn’t bright enough.”

Both men expected a familiar voice to break their argument. Though Roar was not what one would particularly describe as the voice of reason, she was the voice of dispelling away ‘uselessness, time wasters, and detriments to our mission.’ But she remained silent instead.

Both Fang and Claw turned curiously to the table. Roar had her eyes closed, hands folded neatly in her lap. Her head was slightly downturned, hiding her face even more so than before.

“The spirits are crying out.”

The patrons in the bar continued their scurrying, the clatter of dishes and glasses emitting from the far-off kitchens. In the shadows that draped their corner of the room, Roar’s white hood stood out, while locks of burnished gold slipped through the coverings.

“This woman will bring chaos to the world, and she will do so through this girl.” Milla opened her eyes, focused them on Fang. “Will you do your duty, Lloyd?”

She did not call either of them by their names often. Even though they all knew each other well, the moment they undertook this task, they became something entirely different. Protect the order of the world, through any means necessary.

Though Fang, or Lloyd, was still getting used to it.

“Of course,” he told her. He clenched his left fist, gloved in black leather, where he could feel the Exsphere pressing against the material. “I’ll… I’ll keep an eye on her.”

* * *

Velvet was as tight-lipped as when Colette first met her, outside by the outskirts of Elysia. She was a figure whom she had thought to be consumed by malevolence, and still somewhat believed. Yet despite her disfigured arm, Velvet remained human, still in control of her own choices, her own decisions, and her own fate – as she claimed.

“He knows you,” Velvet said as she walked down the road, forcing Colette and Mikleo to keep up. “And you know him. That is where you need to start.”

Colette once again pressed her hands against her neck, feeling coolness that was amplified by the night’s breeze. “But… I don’t. Do you mean we met once before?”

“That’s impossible,” Mikleo argued, keeping his body in between Colette and this strange woman. He was already having reservations following her out of the city of Ladylake. But Colette’s final decisions couldn’t be denied – she trusted her, despite the gloomy aura that Velvet exuded. “I’ve been with Colette ever since we left Elysia together. There’s no way she met a guy like that.”

Velvet didn’t deign to answer, and continued to walk.

“His eyes, though.”

Mikleo shifted his gaze back to Colette. “What?”

But Colette wouldn’t go on, hands still on her neck.

“The world is wrong.” Velvet’s voice pierced through them both, cleanly as a knife, unperturbed by their disturbed faces. “The people you think you’ve known, the world you think you’ve been born in. It’s all been changed. But there are certain things,” and then Velvet gestured to the item Colette consistently touched and cradled in her pale hands. “That can’t be erased.”

Mikleo frowned. “That was a gift from Gramps. For your sixteenth birthday, remember?”

Colette didn’t answer.

Velvet seemed to have run out of patience just then. “You can continue doubting me and stay, or you can listen to what I have to say. This world is wrong because of your friend’s mistakes.” Such words were pointed at Mikleo, in particular.

“Who are you talking about? What friend? You don’t mean Colette?”

The moon was high, and Colette’s gaze was drawn to it. So full and bright, it lit up the ground before them, painted the grass in silver and chilled the breeze that lifted her hair. She was standing, gazing at that moon, as someone apologized to her. There were the creaks of wooden floorboards whenever her feet shifted.

She gripped the chain in her hands, and looked back to Velvet.

“I’ll listen.”

* * *

There was one thing Fang and Claw could bond over, and that was their dogs. Though Repede seemed to scare Noishe more often than not, with barely a flicker of his tail, or a gritting of his pipe against sharp teeth.

Fang scratched beneath Noishe’s large ears as they made their way through the woods. The one he tracked down traveled quickly, even more so when she met up with Velvet. Throughout this whole ordeal, he had felt uneasy. Was it due to that woman? Or that girl who he had suddenly felt drawn to walk up to, to hold her hand, and ask for her name?

 _The world is wrong,_ Milla – wait, Roar, had told him, just before he left the inn. _It will stay wrong as long as those people continue to exist._

“I get it, I know,” Fang said aloud, with Noishe occasionally bumping his head against his thigh. “I won’t get distracted again.”

But he was getting bored with all this sneaking and waiting, and not actually _doing_ anything.

On one of those nights, he made camp, finally freeing his mouth from the black cloth. He figured there was no use in hiding his identity now, out here in the wilderness. No one to order him, no one to question why he felt this strange thrumming deep within his chest.

_She needs to be watched. If anything of her existence threatens our own, then do what you must._

Even an hour of idle whittling didn’t get rid of the words, the air of an order that he faintly didn’t want to acknowledge. Not when he knew Roar was right. The world was indeed wrong, and he had felt that wrongness when he reached for Colette’s hand.

He only knew her name because the other with her had called her by that. And it didn’t mean much. It shouldn’t have, regardless. He saw that guy reach for her hand as well.

Noishe bumped against his arm with his snout, edging away his whittling knife from his thumb.

“Ah… thanks, boy.” He had to put down his tools in the grass. His hands were a little shaky. “…You didn’t recognize her either, did you?”

The dog (which Claw would sometimes argue was _not_ a dog for some reason) tilted his head, and then proceeded to whine. And whine and whine. Fang simply patted his head and decided to be satisfied.

It wasn’t like he had much of a choice in the matter anyway. That was why he, Roar and Claw were here. Root out the problems that the world perceived to be wrong. Keep the balance. Keep the order. Stay at peace.

 _The world is wrong,_ she had said, and somehow, he knew that to be truer than anything.


	2. Chapter 2

The tower far ahead looked like it had been plucked from a mine full of crystal. It radiated a white light that shone like the stars, and made the full moon seem so small. It was a structure that was rumored to have appeared with the falling stars, calling for adventurers to brave its traps and find the treasure. But it was forbidden for anyone to enter the place, one task that the White Lions had been told to upkeep.

Both Fang and Claw watched as the group forced themselves through the barricaded doors to go inside.

“You got your part down?” Claw asked his companion. He was crouched atop the hill, while Repede sniffed the air. The dog then shook himself clear of any lingering dust on his fur, his chain collar making harsh sounds in the night’s stillness. Fang felt a little embarrassed that Noishe was much farther back from them. Apparently, the appearance of the tower frightened the animal and no amount of coaxing from Fang could get him to come near.

His eyes stayed fixated on the group; new faces that he didn’t recognize, only going by both Claw’s and Roar’s reports. But he found her, golden hair weaving among hues of brown, black, and gray - and then the stark white of the one constantly by her side.

“Yo, Fang!”

“Wh- Huh?”

“You going to stop daydreaming or actually get the job done?” Claw stood up, his mouth hidden away by the high collar of his coat. Still, Fang didn’t need to see to know he had a frown on.

“I got it already! I could ask the same of you.”

Claw shook his head. “Just focus on what _you_ need to do, alright? Once they get in further, that’s when we need to make our move. I don’t need to handle the group with her in it, too, do I?”

“No,” Fang answered a bit too quickly. “Roar said I had to anyway.”

“Yeah… she was insistent on that.” It was the first note of hesitance that Fang heard from him. There had been certain faces in that group that Roar selected, and assigned them accordingly. Fang was to pursue both Colette and Mikleo, while Claw had to deal with some scruffy-looking man named Raven. Roar herself would seek out the Velvet woman – as well as someone else.

“There’s nothing in that place to find anyway,” Fang voiced aloud. They had all been there, once, the tower full of confusing floors and bursts of light. But it had been all illusionary, and nothing else. “Why would that woman bring everyone there?”

“Not for anything good. At least here, we can get rid of them all in one place.” As Claw hitched his sword on his waist, Repede strolled to the side, his eyes so serious for a dog as he gripped his pipe between sharp teeth. Fang was starting to get why Noishe felt a little wary of him. “Then no one else will need to be hurt.”

Cut away the problem, and the world can be right again. That’s why Claw was here, for no more needless suffering. That was Fang’s belief as well. The world was peaceful, and no one should break that.

Roar had already left for the tower. Fang imagined her waiting within the walls for her group; to be quick, and silent, and merciful. Soon, they would all be in place. Easy as that, as if someone had placed game pieces on a board and waited.

After a sharp flickering of his tail, Repede then headed back, easily sprinting across the grass to where Noishe was cowering. Fang caught the sight of the dog’s knife strapped to his side, the hilt in easy reach of his mouth.

“Maybe that’s what your dog needs,” Claw suggested. “Give him something to fight enemies with if he’s too afraid to bite them.”

“Noishe wouldn’t even carry around a stick, let alone a knife…” He said this as he watched Repede converse with the much larger dog. Repede had always been very intimidating, with his scarred face, his chain collar, and the way he carried himself, making Noishe seem rather small in comparison. But even his growls were friendlier when he chatted with Noishe. Eventually, that scaredy-cat of a dog whined happily, no longer shuddering.

What _did_ dogs talk about together anyway? Sometimes Fang could understand Noishe… maybe he could ask Claw about it, too.

A tap on his shoulder. “Hey, look.”

His attention was brought back to what was ahead. Everyone had vanished inside the tower’s entrance. The crystals around the structure continued to shine, so bright against the night sky.

“That’s our cue.” Claw made his way down the hilltop. “Keep em’ surrounded,” he called back as he made his way over to the right side.

Fang said nothing back, already going to his designated place by the left, to the hidden entrances the White Lions made for themselves should ever something like this occurred.

It really was all planned so carefully, like some game, and the thought of it could not leave his mind.

Before he disappeared inside, he saw a star fall through the sky. The sight of it stayed with him.

* * *

_The monster fell before their feet, claws outstretched towards Colette before it collapsed. She heard the scraping of metal soon after, of swords being sheathed, and so she relaxed her grip on her chakrams._

_A girl, younger than she was, turned to her with a mildly concerned air. “You choose your guards well, Colette.”_

“Hey. Colette. Did you hear me?”

It had been harder for her to pay attention to much else lately. She could see the thin line in Mikleo’s forehead, a telltale sign of his frustration. It was one she got used to since they were young, walking among the seraphim in their humble homes and green fields.

“I’m being careful,” she told him preemptively.

“Are we really though?” he spoke with an air of disbelief. “We shouldn’t have gone in this tower. We don’t even know where the others have run off too.”

The floors in this place were confusing, cutting them off at intervals, as they had done when they had traveled with the rest. Colette regretted not getting to know the rest of their party too well. The man called Raven had been a little strange, but Jude had been nothing but kind to her. Still, she kept near Mikleo’s side, now that they were seemingly trapped on this stone floor, the ceiling extending high and emitting a strange light, like that of the sun.

_Or of stars, fragments that fell to the earth, that we were meant to find._

She felt Mikleo grab her shoulder, bringing her near him.

_And from out of that star, another warrior fell, and he challenged us. Are we worth the power it holds?_

The warrior, dressed in white, held out twin swords that caught the strange light. They flickered into her eyes, and she spotted the line of red that wrapped around his neck, like the wings of birds, like great streaks of blood.

_The world is wrong._

“Colette!” Mikleo pleaded with her, holding out his staff as he gathered the artes within his chest. “Armitize with me! Hurry!”

_We found our way through the Ruins, and there the Guardian tested me. And you were there, you were on the front lines, withstanding its fire to see me through._

She held her chakrams tight, and her vision blurred when she gazed far across the floor, where the warrior stood. His stance was wide, and then he shifted, aiming the point of one sword at her, as if seeking to slash her throat.

Her neck felt heavy.

“Colette!”

With a swift sheathing of her weapons, she reached out to the seraphim.

_You were there to see me through._

* * *

_“So why are you two treasure hunting?”_

_It was clear that Rita’s own knowledge of the stars went way over their heads, but she was kind, even when she complained about Colette’s slow stride and Lloyd’s penchant for distraction and boredom. Not to mention she was intrigued over Colette’s special luck as she tripped away the traps that would have otherwise had been trouble._

_“Treasure hunting is fun!” Lloyd told her easily. Rita only rolled her eyes, but that didn’t dampen Lloyd’s excitement. “We used to hunt for stuff a lot back in Sylvarant.”_

_“And a Chosen is free to go where she wants… with just one guard.” It was a statement, but one where its speaker left room for more explanations._

_“I like traveling with Lloyd.” Colette pressed a hand against her chest, feeling the weight, comfortable and inviting. “And everyone back home trusts him!”_

_“You share a lot of faith with each other, don’t you?” Rita commented, an observation that she would later scribble down for further use. But it was true. The faith Colette held was tight, as unbroken as the chain around her neck, and the present she carried with her to sleep every night._

_“Well, of course. I believe Colette can do anything.” His brown eyes found hers, and she could only recall-_

_Understand that-_

**_This world is wrong._ **

* * *

He shifted across the floor to dodge the ice pillars that would penetrate through stone. He was a streak of red that twisted towards her, and though she would pull an arrow with her fear lodged within her throat, he’d just then fly off to the side. She could not help but sigh in relief every time.

She could feel Mikleo’s consternation in her head, despite his power pulling her through. (“You have to fight back!”)

It was all she could do as she hopped away, her dress trimmed in blue, fluttering around her thighs. It was easier to move this way, with the artes gathering around her, than with her usual overcoat. She routinely placed her hand against the crystal bound near her neck, imagining its aqua surface fluctuating with each beat of her heart.

It was this movement that she remembered. The way her opponent rushed and flew through the air, and even the quick beginnings of a water prison could not contain him. He dodged around the tendrils, aiming for her, only for her, eyes as fierce as the day before and she knew-

She knows.

Colette stopped in mid-action, lowering her arrow, the wind of his movement lifting her hair, pulling at the ribbons of her clothes. He held out his swords, twin streaks of light, his entire self so silent, and that was wrong. He moved and fought with his own heart on edge, and that was what she had always admired-

* * *

_When they left Sylvarant, they did so by night. It was easier that way – very few, if any, would see them go._

_Colette had held onto Lloyd’s hand, both looking behind them in case of being followed. There would be an uproar in Iselia in the morning, but Colette hoped the letter she left for her father and grandmother would take away some of the sting of her sudden departure._

_“Is this right?” she asked him, not for the first time._

_Lloyd stopped walking, still gripping her hand. “I won’t make you leave if you don’t want to.” He paused. “If you changed your mind, we can-”_

_“But, this was my idea,” she told him. “And I already made you go through all the trouble.”_

_“I really don’t mind!” She raised her head to meet his smile, bright and inviting and something she couldn’t possibly forget. “I mean, it’s not like we’d be gone forever. We’re just… taking a trip. Without, um, telling anyone.”_

_And as a Chosen, savior of the Church, revered within the village of Oracles and known throughout Sylvarant like royalty, she wasn’t really allowed to go on trips often. At least not without guards._

_But Lloyd made up for the missing amount._

_“You’ll get in trouble though.”_

_“Hey, I told you. My dad’ll take care of everything. And you know, you can do whatever you want as the Chosen, right? They can’t really be mad at you for going!”_

_Well, technically, yes, she could. And though Lloyd’s logic had a few holes in it, Colette smiled. “So, we’re going to the capital up north?”_

_“Yep!” And he held her hand even tighter, as he used to do when they were children. “In the same direction where we saw that shooting star.”_

* * *

The ground shook just then.

The tower had numerous floors, ones where Fang knew his companions were on. Roar was fighting that Velvet woman, while Claw was with another part of the girl’s group.

_Her name is Colette._

She fell at the motion, the quake beneath their feet suddenly so humongous it even made Fang stumble. He dropped one sword, reflexively reaching out to her-

_Do I know you?_

-and they both stumbled over each other, as she would do when she tripped over the stairs in their schoolhouse, as he had done when he had rushed over to her on the fields. They fell over each other so much, it was almost a force of habit; both unafraid and knowing that someone would be there to catch them before they hit the ground.

He fell over her roughly on his side, and found his hands gripping against her back and the thin dress she wore. His weapons skidded against the hard floors, out of reach – defenseless.

Then, dimly, a dull throb blossomed over his elbow, which he had just hit against the floor.

“…Ow.”

Limbs in awkward places, his elbow aching, and more than disoriented from not just the shaking, but the fight from before; Fang found himself unable to move or pull away. The light above continued to glow, and it was like the full moon on their nights spent outside, where the inns were too far, and where he would keep her close. As her guard, he couldn’t do anything less…

_What’s happening to me?_

His answer was soft laughter.

It came from her. He blinked and looked down. She was enfolded in his arms (comfortable, warm), with her smile wide and showing just a bit of teeth. Her shoulders shook from the mirth she could barely contain. She faced him with no fear at all.

Lloyd was relieved that his mask hid away his own smile.

* * *

It is through someone’s eyes that she could tell whether that person could be trusted or not.

Mikleo’s had always been open, their blue color pale, in perfect contrast to her deep azure. Like the froth of the sea that the sunlight warmed, to the hidden depths where both light and sound could barely penetrate. Like those colors, like those separate facets of the sea, they fit together. A Shepard and her seraphim, a girl with strange dreams every night and her friend who brought her back with rationale.

All that faded when she looked into the other’s eyes. Brown like oak, like the upturned dirt where his swords would sometimes plunge through, holding him up from a particularly exhausting dodge. Like the rough-edged surface of his crafting table, where a metal tin lay, full of carefully molded clasps and screws, and the first beginnings of a fine chain. Like the floorboards of his balcony where it would creak just so as they sat by the railing, where they had talked that night, sharing both dreams and wishes – and where they saw that falling star streak across the sky.

Colette couldn’t help but laugh and smile.

(“Colette?”) she heard Mikleo ask. But she couldn’t spare him any focus. How would it be possible? She found him. She finally found him.


	3. Chapter 3

Fang had never ran so hard in his life.

Their base of operations wasn’t exactly easy to get into, so he usually had to rely on Noishe to track down the correct path again. Now his dog stood outside by the redwoods, head tilted as the other rushed inside the hidden building, heading for his own private room.

He had to find something. He had to find it and show it to her. But damn him, as if he could remember where it could be now!

The hallways were dark, their details meshed into colors of gray and black. A simple abode, for those tasked with not so simple goals. It was hard for him to pay attention to anything except for the way into his room. Maybe it didn’t matter. Maybe this location would slip out of his mind like so much else. He practically kicked down his door, boots thumping across concrete floors as he searched.

After upturning the mattress, and pushing aside the crafting tools away from his desk, he finally found it – hidden in plain sight on top of a book shelf, which contained no books, but all of his hand-crafted knick-knacks.

This was the only thing he hadn’t made himself.

He grabbed it quickly, then made for the door.

“This world is wrong.”

Fang hadn’t even heard Roar’s footsteps. He skidded on his heels, finding her standing within his doorway, hood over her head. Maybe she had been here all this time, instead summoning a copy of herself to fight in her place at the tower. Could she do that? Honestly, now that he thought about it, there was a lot that Fang didn’t know about her – about Milla, or even Yuri.

Was Claw here too?

“He’s also decided to abandon our mission,” Roar answered his silent question. She inclined her head just slightly, blond strands tumbling over her forehead. He looked closer, saw a bruise forming on her cheek, the hem of her hood a bit frayed, and scorch marks on her right side. She’d been at the tower, too, and somehow beat him here.

“We’re meant to protect this world from disaster.” She frowned. “I thought you were the idealistic type.”

Fang remained still, hands steady and near his swords. He didn’t want to fight anyone now. “But what if… that’s not what we’re doing at all?”

The motion of her now unsheathed sword whipped her robes around her thighs. Black gloves creaked as she tightened her fingers over the expertly-crafted hilt. Another creation from his father – in fact, Dirk had made all the weapons for the White Lions, including their clothes. All to help protect the world.

Much of the blade’s surface was blackened, as if it had been gripped by something demonic.

“We go and fulfill our duty. We go and do what’s right.”

Fang pocketed away the precious item. He’d need both his hands free if was aiming to leave. “That’s exactly what I’m doing.”

Roar furrowed her brows, eyes as bright as fire. “What did that girl say to you?”

“Her name is Colette!” He stopped, surprised at the sudden rush of emotion. He tried to focus. “You have to let me leave.”

“Demanding me now? And if I refuse?”

He didn’t answer.

Roar scoffed, then threw her sword to the side of the room. She strode forward, moving past him to stare at the bookshelf full of wooden carvings and other crafts; tiny figurines, woodcuts, even the beginnings of half-made jewelry. Fang’s body stood rigid, feeling her power emanate from her form, enough to make his hair stand. She spoke with the spirits, she said. Fang wondered if those spirits lived within her instead.

“Like you, Yuri didn’t even bother to face me. Already he was speaking to the man named Raven. He’s as gone as you are.”

Fang slowly let out his breath, turning his head. “Milla-”

“You made me a nice present once. I still have that figurine of myself in my room. So for that, I’m letting you go. I don’t expect you to come back to get the rest of your belongings.” She paused. “I will uphold my duty, despite it all.”

He had nothing more to say to that, so Fang quickly heeded her advice and left the room.

Still, he heard, “Jude was his name…” before he fully left, but he didn’t question it. He had his own fractured memories to sort through.

* * *

Still in her armitized form, Colette sat on the log, hands folded over her knees, slightly chilled by the night air.

(“We’re not actually doing this, are we?”) Mikleo echoed within her head.

They had vacated the tower straight away, once the trembling had finally died down. The one with the red scarf had left soon after, picking himself up from the floor, hands gripping her arms. It had been hard for her to let go, but he had said-

(“Why would he even say that?”) her friend interrupted.

Colette fiddled with her hands. She felt guilty – guilty for leaving her new friends without even a message that she was okay, guilty for perhaps worrying Velvet right now, and for dragging Mikleo into this. Even so.

“I need to meet him.” Her lips set firm. “I need to know. You don’t… have to be here, too.”

(“Like I’d let you see him alone. I’m staying right here.”) Still, Mikleo didn’t sound too confident. The thought of him, crossed arms and in a pout, like he tended to do, made her giggle. (“And then maybe I’ll understand why you trust him so much more over me.”)

“It’s not like that…” But for a moment, she thought about telling him. _It’s because I had dreams about him. Of sitting with him outside and watching the stars, of him laughing, of him saying my name. I found him, now I need to know who he is._

Twigs snapped. She turned.

Despite having fought him just a few hours ago, despite having been engulfed in his arms, eyes so close to hers’ – it was only now that she really got to look at him as a whole. His outfit was steeped in white, its sheen reflecting that of the moon, only complemented by other hues of red and black. His gloves were dark and shortly cut, leaving his forearms bare. But what really stood out from his clothes was his red scarf, trailing down from their loop around his neck, their material thick.

It was that color – red – that latched onto her brain and wouldn’t let go.

Colette stood up immediately, hands to her chest again. “H-hello!”

Despite his intimidating outfit, he betrayed all that by self-consciously scratching the back of his head. “Hi, um… so you got my message from Noishe, right?”

“Oh! Yeah!” Colette nodded, remembering the creature walk up to her in front of the tower, a note in his mouth. “You have a nice doggy!”

(“Our enemy has a dog, so of course he’s trustworthy.”) Mikleo sighed within her ears. She could feel him mentally nudge her about her decisions. (“That didn’t even look like any regular dog…”)

When he walked up to her, she could fully appreciate his height as well. Just a few inches taller, brown hair only slightly unruly, and eyes as dark as the fresh earth. The mask he wore over his mouth was pitch black.

After a moment, he decided to pull down the mask. Colette didn’t make any outward sound, but she felt her heart gasp. “Um, so… my name is Fang. Don’t think I mentioned that?”

(“…Is that… supposed to be some kind of code name?”)

She brushed aside Mikleo’s doubts. “My name is Colette! It’s… nice to meet you.”

* * *

_Once the town of Ruinis was no longer overrun, it was then that Colette decided to ask him._

_“Lloyd?” she sat down next to him, on the steps of their inn. Rita had already gone inside, leaving Lloyd to fix up his swords. “Are you sure you don’t have any wishes?”_

_He paused in the middle of his cleaning, the cloth he held already stained with monster fluids. Actually, his entire red outfit had a few splotches of the stuff here and there. One reason why Rita left so early._

_“Hm, not really. Well… maybe to get that guy to teach me his sword technique.” Lloyd frowned. “I don’t see why he can’t! All the monsters are gone anyway!”_

_Colette giggled at that, wrapping her arms around her knees. She watched him focus hard on his task, only grumbling once in a while about the swordsman they kept running into. Lloyd’s hands deftly handled his weapons, as he did when he worked on a crafting project._

_“Would it be weird if I wanted to wish for something?”_

_Lloyd stopped his polishing, turning to her with a curious stare. “No. Why would I think that’s weird?”_

_She shrugged. “It’s probably not right for me to. I bet there are other people who are in need of a wish more than me…”_

_“Hey, if you wanna wish for something, you should!” He laid his swords to the side, then faced her fully. “But now you gotta tell me what you’re going to wish for. It’s only fair.”_

_“Oh?” Colette was legitimately surprised. “You want to know?”_

_“Yeah! Of course I do!” Lloyd’s eyes were bright with excitement, just like they would usually be when they were on their treasure hunts. “Maybe the star we find can give us more than one wish. So, we have to make sure we don’t go for the same thing!”_

_“Yeah, that makes sense!”_

_“Maybe I can wish for an even better sword technique! Or like… actually, I wonder how that would work. Would I just know instantly? Or would the star teach me it?”_

_“Would that mean the star is actually a swordsman?”_

_“Yeah! Like a magic swordsman! Man, that’s neat.”_

_“Wow! We should tell Rita about it. I’m sure she’d like it for her research!”_

_With both of them so engrossed about the star’s possible swordsmanship, it took Lloyd a moment to get back on track. “Oh, but yeah, what are you going to wish for?”_

_Colette blinked, one hand idly tracing the shape of her necklace. She didn’t know when she had taken hold of it, but its weight kept her rooted in the present._

_She looked to Lloyd with an embarrassed smile. “I, uh, forgot. Hehe. Sorry.”_

_Even Lloyd hadn’t expected that. He sighed, but laughter edged in. “You dork.”_

* * *

The brief flashes of memories were constant. Colette had to tighten her fingers to get rid of the strain. She held onto the fabric of her sleeves, needing something tangible, or she would fall through this world that was shaped and twisted in ways she couldn’t really understand.

Fang was seated next to her on the log. Maybe if she did fall, she could hold onto him, like before.

The sky had gotten dark, and so Fang had offered to make themselves a campfire if Colette wanted it. She said it wasn’t necessary, but his movements as he put together the firewood once again brought echoes. Now, seated before the flames, awkward silence had fallen over them both. A particularly chilly wind blew in from the right, making her shiver.

“You okay?” Fang asked her with genuine worry.

“I’m fine. I’m just not used to being in this form for very long.” The dress, while allowing her better movement, was not exactly made for shielding her from the cold.

“So, that guy is, um, in your head right now?” She had quickly explained about Mikleo, though it still looked like he had trouble understanding the concept. “That’s pretty cool, but does it ever get weird?”

(“He knows I can hear him, can’t he?”) Mikleo huffed, and she could feel his urge to talk back to Fang aloud thread into her throat. She swallowed, silently asking him to be calm.

“He’s my best friend. It’s not _that_ weird.” She smiled. “And he’s just a bit worried over me right now because of…”

“Oh.” Fang looked to the side with some embarrassment. “Yeah, I guess I can see where he’s coming from.”

Another moment of silence passed. Colette felt Mikleo’s impatience, and could even feel Fang’s own uneasiness, the way he tapped the fingers of his right hand over his knee, shifting his weight every once in a while.

She took a breath. “I just-”

“I only-”

Both stopped in mid-sentence, confused but not unperturbed by the incident. Even Mikleo’s presence felt less pronounced, leading her to feel she was truly alone with this person.

Fang stared, then reached for something within his coat. He held something within his hand, though his fingers largely covered it. “I guess… I feel like we know each other. But I can’t say for sure if that’s true or just… my head playing tricks on me. But I’ve had this for a long time. Someone gave it to me.”

Colette still couldn’t see it clearly. He was gripping it so tight, almost nervously. “Who gave it to you?”

“I don’t remember.” He scrunched his forehead. “But I should remember.” He raised his head to her, then held it out to her. In his palm was a small figurine of an animal. The surface of it looked like it was carved out of bleached wood. Indents and curves made the wood take on the shape of a snow bunny; ears folded against its back, snout thrust forward in mid-sniff, and paws curled up close to its chest, evoking the image of this small animal hiding within the snow banks. Two red jewels were embedded in its face, serving as its eyes.

“Do you recognize this?” Fang asked. In his voice, she heard an expectation.

Timidly, she reached out for the figurine, fingers brushing against the smoothness of its craftsmanship. It had a certain weight to it; not too heavy, but light enough to carry around in one’s pockets, like a charm. It looked quite pretty.

She stared for another minute, waiting.

“No. I’ve never seen this before.”

She knew then that this was wrong.

It was too late. Something far worse than disappointment crossed Fang’s features. He looked down at the ground beneath their feet, and she couldn’t help but feel guilty.

“But… maybe if I look at it longer? I’m sure I’ll remember it soon!”

After some visible struggle, Fang stood up. His movements were jittery. “Ah, this was… dumb. And I made you come out all this way. Sorry, I shouldn’t have…” He turned to leave.

Colette got to her feet immediately. “Wait! But I haven’t-” Still clutching the bunny, she made too wide a step, and for a moment, she thought she would trip again. But her foot had landed on something with better traction than the gravel-covered ground.

The scarf around Fang’s neck suddenly tightened. “Agh!”

“Oh!” She tried to step back, but had somehow shifted the scarf even more underneath her foot.

It brought the other down backwards until he was suddenly on his back.

Mikleo’s feelings of embarrassment perfectly reflected her own. (“Did… did you seriously just do that?”)

“Fang!” She knelt at to his side. He didn’t answer right away. Oh no, did he hit his head? “I’m so sorry! Are you alright? Please answer me! Fang!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're curious, [here's](https://twitter.com/mugi1441/status/863022861052555264) the picture that inspired a certain part of this chapter...


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